Static CD4 count

Oct 13, 2013

Hello, am dun. I was diagonised with HIV in April 2012 and starting on medication (atripla)in may 2012. By then my CD4 count was 316, virallaod was 53copies.i took a viralload test again in decemember 2012 and the results indicated less than 20 copies which according to the doctor it was undetectable. In may 2013, i took CD4 test again the the results didnot valley from the initial ones(316). I expected that almost after a year on medication my CD4 count would have risen beyond let say 500. Is this normal, please advise.

Response from Dr. Holodniy

You don't indicate what your HIV viral load result was in May 2013. I assume it was still undetectable? In addition, another result to follow is the CD4%. I assume you were given that result as well. It would be important to see whether the CD4% has increased since starting HIV treatment to calibrate what is going on with your CD4 count. Also, it is helpful to see what your total white blood cell count (WBC) and total lymphocyte counts are to see if they have changed at all to account for your CD4 count not increasing. Although I understand your concern, as long as the viral load remains undetectable that is what is most important now. The CD4 count could still continue to increase over time.

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